Legal Question in Intellectual Property in Washington

I have a sports blog where I�m taking pictures of players and posting them online. Since team logos are subject to copyright, what�s the legality of me doing this? Can I post a picture of a baseball player who happens to be wearing a Yankees hat?


Asked on 1/03/12, 7:56 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

The biggest issue here is infringement of the players' right of publicity. Everyone has a right to control the use of their name, likeness, and image. This is especially true for celebrities who hold commercial value over their image. By taking pictures of these athletes, you risk taking away their publicity rights.

Nonetheless, I can see one possible exception to this, and that is if the use is for a newsworthy purpose. Whether something is considered newsworthy is determined by your state's laws. Be warned though, bloggers are oftentimes not considered a news source.

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Answered on 1/03/12, 8:23 pm


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